"
"Thou hast told him, then,--and a murrain light on thee!"
With eyes glistening like witch-fires, did the dame bestow her malison.
Robin half-repented his refusal; but he was stubborn, and his courage
not easily shaken. Besides, he had bragged at the last Michaelmas feast
that he cared not a rush for never a witch in the parish. He had an
_Agnus Dei_ in his bosom, and a leaf from the holy herb in his clogs;
and what recked he of spells and incantations? Furthermore, he had a
waistcoat of proof given to him by his grandmother.[40]
"Since thou hast denied me the mare, I'll take thee in her place."
Robin felt in his bosom for the _Agnus Dei_ cake, but it was gone!--He
had thrown of his waistcoat, too, for the work, and his clogs were lying
under the rack. Before he could furnish himself with these
counter-charms, Goody Dickisson threw the bridle upon him, using these
portentous words:--
"Horse, horse, see thou be;
And where I point thee carry me."
Swift as the rush of the wind, Robin felt their power. His nature
changed: he grew more agile and capacious; and without further ado,
found Goody upon his back, and his own shanks at an ambling gallop on
the high-road to Pendle.
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